Display stand

ABSTRACT

A boxlike display stand or unit comprising an outer shell and an inner casing mounted within said shell. The shell is provided with top and bottom end walls having bosses extending outwardly therefrom, respectively, and support members extending between said top and bottom end walls defining openings or ports in said shell. The inner casing comprises vertical walls having apertures therein adapted to receive the projecting bosses of adjacent units whereby a plurality of such units may be joined in a display or to receive articles for display.

I 2.3641101" 111/1944 5121111611 2,482,174, '9/1949, 1 Hake' Filed I na urism I wh gi -res mam Invent or Alphonse ltfll e'filatalvg- B APP -MQ 1730,7 V 1 ,1 ,1 ,19- Patented' "Jan.'ll,'l97;1- 3 p 1 Assignee 1 Thec'arbbrundum Con pany 1 Niagara FaIIs Q 1farcnrporatinn(Delaware jnlsrLAylsrAnn" i u.s.c|.;;.-.;. @211/177," ans 45.31

Mus/10' NITED-STAT S PATENTS i 2l l/4 IX 312/1 1 lUX 206/4531 22003.4

2,488,147 ll/l 9' 49 Th'eisen 2,582,553 11/1952 McMurtrie. 4/1967 Henry 3/1968. Troy FOREIGN PATENTS 8/1922 Great Britain 1' 7 Primary Examiner- Dav id J. Williamoivsky Assistant Examiner-Andrew V. Kundrat Attorney-K. W. Browne ABSTRACT: A boxlike display stand or unit comprising an 1 Outer shell and an inner casing mounted within said shell. The shell is' prnyided with tpp and bottoni end walls having bosses extending outwardly therefrom, respectively, and support members extending between said top and bottom end walls 1 defining openings or ports in said shell. The inner casing comprises Yvertical walls having apertures therein adapted to receive the projecting bossesof adjacent units whereby 'a pluf rality'of such units-may be joined in a display or to receive artieles for display. 7

PATENTEU JAN 1 2 IMHYIY 3am 1 UFIZ FIG.3

FIG.2

INVENTOR. ALPHONSE- RICHARD DeNATALE PATENT JAN 1 2 km sum 2 or g,

FIG. 7

F 6 INVENTOR. ALPHONSE RICHARD DeNATALE 6.7 isapers ctive view w n arr r lyrx de hereinafier. are applied only ,torj con venie'nc e; ofdescriptioh w r seito l e,illustration 'ot Flc; 1

, msn ivsrisn, summing; Tl'l-lE invention 7 apparatus of the invention provides a new and improved portable, lightweight display 'stand'or unit which is simple and stronginlconstruction, rugged and durable in use. i

and capable of a wide varietyof uses. The displayunit com- 1 prises an outer shell, havingupright support members extend- .in between the top' andfbottome'nd walls of 'said shell and defining with the,end .-walls, openings in said shell. An inner casing suitably rigidly mounted within theshell, comprises vertical walls having apertures therein. The outer surfaces of the top and' bottomend walls'are provided with outwardly pro- I jecting bosses which are adapted to be inserted in the apertures of the vertical-casing walls of other display units to form grooves 44 is formed tally positioned units,

- opposed grooves 44 do not lie in a'frueruertical or horizontal plane so that when the boss of one unit is mated with an aperture of a second unit, the outer surfaces of the units are askew relative to each other and the edges thereof do not lie in commodular arrangements of vertically and/or horizontally posh tionedunits.

aaissuascninr ou oi- Tue nnnwino Fl G'. l isa perspective view of a display stand or unit constructed in accordancewiththe principles of this invention; I o 1 FIG. 2 is a top plan view,'partially in section, of-the display unitshownin.FlG'l;-' r i I I FlG. 3jis aside elevation FIG.1;

I view of the dis'playunit shownin FIG, 4jis a fragmentary'view, partiallyin section, illustrating twodisplay units joiried-togethenf 1 I- I I FIG. 5 is ;a fragmentary; sectional view illustrating; the" mounting of an articlein adisplay unit,

' .mon planes. Rotation of one unit'relative to the other after assembly will align the units and interlock the m by means of the 5 binding relationship of the lugs 36 acting on the inner surface of sidewall 40 (see FIG. 4). Thus, a single display unit may be utilized ora plurality of unils may be abuttingly positioned in any desired or convenient arrangementas illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7. f Although fourlugs on each. boss and four grooves in each wall 40 are conveniently employed for most purposes. it

' will be understood that any necessary or desired number may be employed and'that they may be arranged in any suitable pattern or, when desired. may be omitted.

Referring to FIG. 4, it will be seen that ,a pair of display units l0are disposed in a stacked or coupled relationship whereby I the outer surfaces of the angle members 16 and the outer surunitsposition'ed inone exemplary arrangementyand Y. 1

"oescal tnouor'hrttarcaitso EMBoDlMEnr a Referringto thedrawirigs itwillbe observed thata display I 3 stand or unit, c mprehensively. d s gn i d, 10.. gonstructed in I e asv hrrr irls f lin s em Comprises r s y' vith l wardly, andthe km. .3 s

vtaken'aslirriitiitgtheEsco ofihis invention;

' O r hellieomments!" q sa dmr ts sj sls s pp r rheni r 'l fli meanw i e a 'be w a l' 2o andatopfendwall 22; The-spaces between each pairofad :I jacent members 16 and the iend walls: define substantially I qve s p s Q 18 iitths e o s ell l2 andrm accessto the' iritoriorof the shell, Bottom end-wall 20 hasa I flange jor rim zivtferablygintegral with me nzo spa-the lower ends of'ntembers 16 projectingupwardly; around the P a peripheral edge-'of'said-wallzfl. Likewise, toperid w'allZ Zhas' I I a a "em 9 016 n rfsr lyi wsral w t tl sv a l Z2 widths "upper ends of members 16; projectingdownwardly around the peripheral edgeof said wall 22. The bottom and top end walls have outer surfaces 28 and 30 with cylindrically shaped bosses 32 and 34, respectively, projecting outwardly therefrom. Each of the bosses is provided with a plurality of lugs '36. disposed about the periphery 'ofthe boss, adjacent the free end thereof may be completely eliminated, if

. inner casing 14 com-nasal; vertical sidewalls 4o, rigidly shell 12 and being, at each end, spaced inwardly from theenp I illustrating alplurality ofdisplay t itspo' oned n another exemplaryarrangenientf Clan an m a; ins 4 su y i ii f wts itp el w r; op.

d should notwbe 30fv FIG. 6 is'a -pe rspec,tive.yiew illustrating a plurality of display 7 face 30 of wall22 bear againsteach other in a flush fit. The

boss 34 ofonejunit is-shown inserted in an aperture 42 .of a

sidewall of a second unit with the lugs-36 of the boss bearing snugly against the inner surface of said wall. The space betweenwall22and interior wall 40 can, as shown, be utilized to accommodate'a circular lighting fixture 46 such as a fluorescent or neon tube, suitably connected to an electrical .1 ous colors in order to further enhance powersource (not shown). for providing illumination of varithe attractiveness of the display. r I i I Although the display unit of this invention has general utilil tyin exhibiting a variety of products. it isparticularly useful in displaying chinaw'are orother products having circular shapes.

1 For example, ,asshown in FlG'JS, a dish .50 having an outer, .dished's'urface 52 may be placed in an aperture 42 and I clamped in position by means of oneio'rmoreresilient clamps to attach the display units together and-any suitable clamping or mounting means may be used in lieu of resilient clamp 54 "for a purpose hereinafter explained. It should be understood that only one of said outersurfaces may be provided with a l boss or that the I desired.v I l 54. Each clamp hasan angular portion 56, which engages the inner snrface of the wall 40 andtheinner portion of apertures 42, and terminates in a hook portion 58, that engages the peripheral edge or rim of said dish. it should be appreciated thatthe use of this invention is not restricted to displaying chinaware or articles having circular shapes, but may be used .to exhibit a variety of articles of varied shape and form. For

this purpose the apertures 42 may be of any desired size.

. Although the bosses 32 and 34 and complementary aperf ,tures 42 of the display units are shown and above described as being circular, the principles of this invention envisage a variety of mating configurations'such as oval, elliptical, rectangular .or any other desired shape. -Likewise, openings 18 may be'of any desired shape and appropriate size within the purview of this invention. It should also be appreciated that any suitable coupling or interlocking means may be employed for securing articles of manufacture to or within the display unit.

The units may be formed of a variety of materials or combination thereof, such as transparentor opaque plastics, glass,

, wood, or metal and maybe produced in any color or combinaconnected at their lower and upper'er' ds, respectively, to the j I inner surfaces of bottom end wall-20 andtop end wall 22 of tire outer circumferential edge portion of the end walls 20 and 22, respectively, Each ofsaid sidewalls 40 has'a circularaperture 42 to provide access into the interior of casing 14. These tion of colors desired. For most purposes, the units are preferably formed of suitable plastic and molded in sections. Thereafter the sections are joined together by any suitable cement.

The present invention provides a novel, simple display stand or unit which is lightweight, rugged and durable in use, and capable of withstanding much abuse and handling. By the provision of a casing disposed within'thebuter shell of the disstrong units relatively large structures such as walls, room dividers, screens',et'c. may be produced.

A preferred embodiment of this invention having been hereinabove described and illustrated, it is to be understood that numerous modifications thereof can be made without departing from the broad spirit and scope of this invention as defined by the appended claims. For instance, one or more of the vertical walls 40 may be spaced differently from the sides of the shell 12, suitable adjustment being made in the length of the bosses.

I claim:

1. A display unit comprising: an outer shell having spaced end walls; a plurality of laterally spaced support members extending between said spaced end walls; said laterally spaced support members and said end walls defining openings in said shell; each of said end walls having inner and outer surfaces; an inner casing mounted withinsaid outer shell and having vertical sidewalls,'each of said sidewalls extending between said spaced end walls of said outer shell and being, at each end, spaced inwardly from the entire outer circumferential edge portion of each of said end walls and said support members; said .vertical sidewalls defining the periphery of said inner casing;-and an aperture being provided in at least one of said side walls for providing access into the interior of said inner casingr 2. A display apparatus comprising: a plurality of display units as defined in claim 1 and interlocking means carried by said units securing adjacent units together.

3. A display unit as defined in claim 1 wherein said openings in said shell are rectangular in shape.

4. A display unit as defined in claim 1 including a boss projecting outwardly from the outer surface of an end wall and adapted to be inserted in an aperture ol an adjacent display 5. A display unit comprising: an buter shell having spaced end walls; a plurality of laterally spaced support members extending between said spaced end wallsysaid laterally spaced support members and saiiiier'id walls defining openings-in said shell; each of said end walls-having inner and outer surfaces; a boss projecting outwardly from'ach of said outer surfaces; an inner casing mounted within said outer shell-and having vertical sidewalls extending between said spaced end walls of said outer shell; and an aperture provided in each of said side walls for providing access into the interior ofsaid-inner casing, each of said apertures being adapted to receive the boss of an adjacent display unit.

6. A display unit as defined in claim 5, wherein at least one of said bosses has a plurality of peripheral lugs.

7. A display unit as defined in claim 5 wherein at least one of said apertures has a plurality of grooves disposed about its periphery.

8. A display apparatus comprising: a plurality of display units as defined in claim 5 and interlocking means carried by said units securing adjacent units together.

9. A display apparatus as defined in claim 8 wherein each of said bosses hasa plurality of peripheral lugs and each of said apertures has a plurality of peripheral groovesand wherein said lugs of one'of said units are interfitting with saidgrooves of an adjacentunit.

10. A display apparatus as defined in claim 8 wherein the outer surface of an end wall of one display unit and the vertical wall of the casing of an adjoining display unit define a space; and a lighting fixture is mounted within said space. 

1. A display unit comprising: an outer shell having spaced end walls; a plurality of laterally spaced support members extending between said spaced end walls; said laterally spaced support members and said end walls defining openings in said shell; each of said end walls having inner and outer surfaces; an inner casing mounted within said outer shell and having vertical sidewalls, each of said sidewalls extending between said spaced end walls of said outer shell and being, at each end, spaced inwardly from the entire outer circumferential edge portion of each of said end walls and said support members; said vertical sidewalls defining the periphery of said inner casing; and an aperture being provided in at least one of said side walls for providing access into the interior of said inner casing.
 2. A display apparatus comprising: a plurality of display units as defined in claim 1 and interlocking means carried by said units securing adjacent units together.
 3. A display unit as defined in claim 1 wherein said openings in said shell are rectangular in shape.
 4. A display unit as defined in claim 1 including a boss projecting outwardly from the outer surface of an end wall and adapted to be inserted in an aperture of an adjacent display unit.
 5. A display unit comprising: an outer shell having spaced end walls; a plurality of laterally spaced support members extending between said spaced end walls; said laterally spaced support members and said end walls defining openings in said shell; each of said end walls having inner and outer surfaces; a boss projecting outwardly from each of said outer surfaces; an inner casiNg mounted within said outer shell and having vertical sidewalls extending between said spaced end walls of said outer shell; and an aperture provided in each of said side walls for providing access into the interior of said inner casing, each of said apertures being adapted to receive the boss of an adjacent display unit.
 6. A display unit as defined in claim 5, wherein at least one of said bosses has a plurality of peripheral lugs.
 7. A display unit as defined in claim 5 wherein at least one of said apertures has a plurality of grooves disposed about its periphery.
 8. A display apparatus comprising: a plurality of display units as defined in claim 5 and interlocking means carried by said units securing adjacent units together.
 9. A display apparatus as defined in claim 8 wherein each of said bosses has a plurality of peripheral lugs and each of said apertures has a plurality of peripheral grooves and wherein said lugs of one of said units are interfitting with said grooves of an adjacent unit.
 10. A display apparatus as defined in claim 8 wherein the outer surface of an end wall of one display unit and the vertical wall of the casing of an adjoining display unit define a space; and a lighting fixture is mounted within said space. 